1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates, in general, to a bumper beam assembly for a vehicle and, more particularly, to a bumper beam assembly for a vehicle, which has excellent ability to absorb crash energy.
2. Description of Related Art
A bumper beam assembly is mounted on the front or rear end of a vehicle as part of an attempt to protect the main body of a vehicle as well as the occupants against a crash. As shown in FIG. 1, the bumper beam assembly of the related art includes a back beam 1 extending in the lateral direction of the main body of the vehicle, the back beam being made of glass mat reinforced thermoplastic (GMT), and crash boxes 2 coupled on both ends of the back beam 1. Each crash box 2 protrudes towards the inside of the vehicle (in the direction toward the interior space of the vehicle), and is made of a steel.
The crash box 2 is configured such that it is coupled to a side member 3, which forms a part of the main body.
The bumper beam assembly, which is configured as above, is required to satisfy safety regulations about crash performance. Tests for such crash performance include, for example, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) test, in which front crash and 15%-offset crash are performed, and the Research Council for Automobile Repairs (RCAR) test, in which a 40%-offset crash is performed.
At the front and 15%-offset crash tests, most crash energy is absorbed first by the back beam 1 of the bumper beam assembly of the related art, and the rest of the crash energy is absorbed by the crash boxes 2.
At the 40%-offset crash test, most of the crash energy is absorbed by the crash boxes 2.
In the bumper beam assembly of the related art, the crash boxes 2 must be configured such that they participate in absorbing crash energy in the front and 15% offset crash tests and the 40%-offset crash test. Accordingly, the crash boxes 2 must be fabricated such that they have high rigidity.
However, a drawback of the highly-rigid crash boxes 2 is that they fail to sufficiently absorb crash energy. Consequently, as the amount of the crash energy that is transferred toward the main body of the vehicle increases, there is increased damage to the side member 3 and the vehicle body panel.
The information disclosed in this Background of the Invention section is only provided to enhance the understanding of the background of the invention, and should not be taken as an acknowledgment or any form of suggestion that this information forms the prior art that would already be known to those skilled in the art.